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SYRUPS

As much as I love to muddle, my fascination with Simple Syrup is even greater. It is the one ingredient in the bar that you have absolute control over, and it’s the perfect sweetener for cold drinks because the sugar’s already been dissolved before it is added to the drink.

Many of the recipes in this book rely on homemade syrups with bespoke flavour infusions that you’ll be hard pressed to find in the shops. All of these are made using Simple Syrup, and details of these are given here. And plain Simple Syrup itself is used even more often; once you learn its dirty little secret, you’ll never waste your money buying it again!

What is Simple Syrup? Water and sugar! It’s really that simple. In a pinch, you can even combine the two ingredients in your cocktail shaker, shake it up, and voilà. That’s called ‘bar syrup’, and it will do, but there is a standard Simple Syrup recipe that you’ll turn to time and again on your cocktail adventures:

In a small saucepan, bring 250ml (8½fl oz) of water to the boil. Add 225g (8oz) of sugar and stir constantly until it has dissolved completely. Cover the pan, reduce the heat and then simmer for 15 minutes. Let the syrup cool before bottling it in a tightly sealed jar. This will produce 250ml (8½fl oz) of syrup, which will keep well in the refrigerator for a week or two.

Now that you know the secrets to Simple Syrup, it’s time to add flavour! The possibilities are endless, and you can make single-ingredient syrups or create custom blends with complementary flavours. These homemade syrups provide a great way to get the taste of fresh ingredients into an easy-to-mix sweetener.

The additional ingredients you’ll need to add to the basic syrup recipe in order to create each of the homemade syrups mentioned in this book are provided opposite. The individual recipes will then guide you through the process of making them.

For all syrups, the general technique is to add the flavouring ingredient (chopped fruit or whole herbs and spices) after turning the syrup down to a simmer, then let it steep in the syrup until it has cooled down completely. Before bottling, strain out any solid pieces so that you are left with a clean flavoured syrup.

Use the syrup for the intended cocktail, then explore its potential in other drinks – any syrup can be topped with soda water for a homemade soft drink, many will work as a sweetener for lemonade or iced tea, and some are perfect for hot drinks like coffee and tea (especially the cinnamon syrup).

Three recipes call for honey syrup, which enables you to add the flavour of honey to a drink in a form that is easier to mix. Honey syrup is made with equal parts of honey and water, stirred until they reach a uniform consistency. You can make just enough for each cocktail.

FLAVOURED SYRUPS USED IN THE RECIPES

Lavender syrup: used in the Lavender Pink Lemonade; add 3 tablespoons of lavender flowers.

Rose syrup: used in the No Way Rosé Margarita; add 120ml (4fl oz) of rose water.

Strawberry syrup: optional in The Frosé; add 3 large strawberries and ¼ teaspoon of vanilla extract (optional, but recommended).

Basil syrup: used in the Watermelon Frosé; add 20g (¾oz) of basil leaves.

Borage syrup: used in the Sparkling Borage Cocktail; add a handful of borage flowers and young leaves.

Rosemary syrup: used in the Rosaquiri; add 1 or 2 sprigs of rosemary.

Thyme syrup: used in the Rosé Sour; add 5 large sprigs of thyme.

Vanilla–lavender syrup: used in the Blushing Fizz; add 7g (¼oz) of lavender buds and 1 vanilla pod.

Sage–lime syrup: used in the Sage Gimlet; add a few sage leaves and the juice of 1 lime.

Lychee syrup: used in the Lychee Ginger Martini; add 85g (3oz) of hulled fresh lychees.

Rosemary–basil syrup: used in the Rosemary & Basil Fizz; add 1 sprig of rosemary and 20g (¾oz) of basil leaves.

Cinnamon syrup: used in the Poinsettia Sangria; add 1 cinnamon stick.

Plain honey syrup: is found in the Sweet Honey Rosé and the Rosé Collins recipes. The Tea for You & Me recipe adds the juice of a lime to honey syrup.